1987: First-hand Witness
by BookWorm39
Summary: Sometimes, things go wrong. But years ago, in the "New and Improved" Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, things couldn't seem to go right at all. (One-shot. Moved from "One-shots at Freddy's" due to insane length. Renamed from simply '1987.')


_A/N: Alright, I think this needs to be posted on its own, separate from "One-Shots at Freddy's." It's just so big, I feel like it can stand alone. Anyway, if this popped up in your alerts back in late June, that's why.  
_

 _Really, though, this is one_ big _sucker, but I'm proud of it. Grab_ _a drink, and enjoy!  
_

* * *

How could everything go so wrong?

My name is Thomas Phillips. I worked as a janitor at the "New and Improved" Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria until it closed down due to...incidents.

What kind of incidents, you ask? That takes me back, back to one fateful night...

I walked into my apartment, took off my jacket and rubbed my eyes. It was almost midnight by the time I got home. I had to stay late at work and help out after what happened.

 _"B-boss, what happened? Why are we closing?"_

I opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of beer. I was never much of a drinker, but it might help calm my nerves.

 _"Don't you get it, Phillips?! After the thing with the missing kids, you still don't know?!"_

 _"Calm down, Belle. He doesn't know about the kids."_

I had come into work that day a little nervous. My employer, Mr. Scotsman, had told me earlier that week we were dealing with some legal trouble, but also that it was nothing to worry about. Not to mention the animatronics' strange behavior.

 _"Thomas, did you hear the... Rumors?"_

 _"About the five kids that went missing? Yeah, did you find them?"_

 _"...Not quite."_

 _"What do you mean?"_

My friend Ross, the day shift guard, wasn't there that day, which was odd. He was always good about showing up on time. Mr. Scotsman's daughter Bella said there was a reason, but didn't tell me what it was.

Ross worked the night shift for a week before getting bumped to the day shift. He kept saying the Toys were trying to kill him. Now, I thought he was joking, or maybe seeing things, but just in case, Mr. Scotsman added a few safety features, and asked me to record a few messages for Ross's replacement to explain them.

I felt tears form in my eyes. Now Ross was gone, the pizzeria was closing and worst of all, five children were-

My phone rang.

I turned to the table in the living room it sat on. Shaking my head, I picked up the phone. Maybe my boss wanted to give me an update on our last day tomorrow? "Hello?"

"H-hello? Hi, it's Jeremy, J-Jeremy Fitzgerald? I-I think you were the one helping me out-thanks, by the way- a-and I was wondering if you have anything else for me?"

 _Oh, no. No, no, **no!**_

"What on earth are you doing there?" I found myself crying desperately into the phone. "Didn't you get the memo?"

"N-No, what is it?" The younger man sounded terrified.

 _"Bella shut down the animatronics; she'll take the night shift tonight, so don't worry about leaving a message for the guard tonight. If things are as bad as Mr. Weston said, it won't be safe, what with them acting weird even during the day. "_

I took a deep breath. "Uh, the place is closed down, at least for a while. Someone used one of the suits. We had a spare in the back, a yellow one; someone used it...now none of them are acting right." I found my eyes watering again. What happened to those kids... It was terrible.

"What? W-what did they do?"

 _"N-no, it can't be. Ross wouldn't-"_

 _"I'm sorry, Mr. Phillips, but all the evidence points to him."_

"Gah! N-no!"

I snapped out of it. "Hey, are you okay?"

There was a moment of silence, and then I heard, "Y-yeah, Bonnie showed up in the office. I swear, without a face, he's three times as creepy as he would be."

That last comment made me pause. "Wait, you mean the old one?"

"Y-yeah, the old one from Parts and Service are moving too."

 _I looked at the old animatronics. I was still fond of them, particularly Foxy._

 _I thought of my plan. My dream to buy these four from Mr. Scotsman, reopen their old place._

 _"Don't worry, you guys. As soon as this place is stable, I'll get you out of here."_

"Listen j-just finish your shift," I said, returning my focus to my phone. "It's safer than trying to leave in the middle of the night."

"W-wasn't planning to leave the office anyway," the voice on the other end said. "Anything else?"

I stopped and thought for a moment. "Uh, we have one more event scheduled for tomorrow, a birthday. You'll be on day shift, wear your uniform, stay close to the animatronics, make sure they don't hurt anyone, okay?"

"G-got it-MUSIC BOX!" I heard scrambling noises on the other end of the line, then a sigh of relief. "I'm okay."

I smiled. This kid was tough. "Good. For now, just make it through the night. Uh, when the place eventually opens again, I'll probably take the night shift myself, so-"

I was interrupted. "What?! Are you crazy?!" The night guard sounded...angry, almost. "L-look, now it's my turn to give you a tip: Don't take the job. Please, I don't think anyone could last longer than a week here!"

 _"Thomas, I'm serious! Those things are frickin' psychotic!"_

 _"Ross, really, are you getting enough sleep during the day?"_

 _"This isn't a goddamn joke!"_

 _"Okay, okay," I sighed. "Tell you what: I'll take the shift after the guy we've got on it quits."_

 _"What?! Thomas, the hell are you thinking? I-" Ross stopped to take a breath. He may act tough most of the time, but he seemed genuinely upset. "I can't let you do that. If you get killed-"_

 _"Ross," I held up a hand, "I'm sure by the time I take the job, they'll have whatever's wrong fixed anyway."_

 _Ross stared at me, then sighed "There's no talking you out of it, is there?"_

"I made a promise," I said simply, "and I need to keep it."

There was more silence, then the night guard said, "...Okay. I just-This job does a number on you, you know?"

"...Yeah. Look, be careful, okay? I'd hate for someone to get hurt."

"Got it. I-YEEP!" I heard an ominous echo-like noise, and the click of a flashlight. "S-sorry 'bout that," the guard said. "I-I should hang up and focus now."

I nodded, forgetting he couldn't see me. "Okay, good night and good luck."

Click.

* * *

I walked into the pizzeria the nest day extremely worried. Was the night guard-Jeremy, was it?-alright? He sounded scared out of his mind.

I realized what this probably meant: Ross wasn't making this stuff up. The animatronics were trying to get into the office. But surely they weren't trying to kill him.

...Right?

"Thomas! There you are!"

I looked up, and to my surprise, there was a redhead in oil-spotted clothes.

"Fritz? What are you doing here?" Fritz Smith was our old repair-man. He had helped build the Toys, and was in charge of fixing them-until he got fired for tampering with them when he took the night shift temporarily after Ross got moved.

"Well, I heard you guys were having trouble, so I offered to come back and work on the bots for free. If you guys are gonna reopen in a few months, might as well get a head start on fixing them, right? 'Sides, not like I can make things any worse at this point, can I?" That last part sounded a tad bitter, but he switched back to his cheerful attitude quickly. "Hey, I also got that old coffee machine working again. Why don't you go get some? You look like you could use it."

"Huh? Oh, sure. Thanks." Did I really look that bad? I sure felt like trash. I didn't sleep very well the night before, for obvious reasons.

I walked into the break room, and sure enough, I was hit by the smell of hot coffee. Mr. Scotsman was sitting at the table, holding a mug and staring down. He looked up as I poured myself a cup.

"Phillips! Good to see you," he said, smiling. (Though I got the distinct feeling it was forced.) He furrowed his eyebrows, looking me up and down. "Did you sleep alright last night?"

I sighed and took a sip of my coffee, then said, "No, not really. Apparently the usual night guard was working last night, and he was kind of scared, so-"

"Wait, Fitzgerald was here last night? Why?" Mr. Scotsman looked deeply upset, bordering on terrified.

"I-I don't know. He didn't seem to know about the lockdown, and he even said the animatronics were moving," I said. I'd never seen my boss like this, even after he told me about the kids. He was definitely sad, but not scared like this.

He placed his head in his hands. "Thomas...Do you know if he's alright?"

I blinked, and then shook my head. "Like I said, he sounded shaken, and stopped to do something a few times, but he hung up after a few minutes." I thought for a moment, then asked, "Hey, you don't think the animatronics were really a threat to the night guards, do you?"

He was silent for a little, then said, "...I think it's certainly a possibility."

My eyes widened. "You're kidding, right? Th-that can't be... There's no way-"

Mr. Scotsman stood and glared at me. "What do you think is wrong then? Face it, the animatronics don't work right, and now, someone might be dead because of them!"

He sighed, sitting back down. "I'm sorry, Phillips, I'm just... stressed, is all." He looked out to the party rooms, where people were starting to gather. "I'm going to have to ask Bella why Mr. Fitzgerald was here last night."

I sighed, looking away. "No, I understand." I smiled sadly. "Hey, he seems pretty tough. I'm sure he's fine."

As if on cue, Melody, our still-hired day guard stuck her head in. "Hey, Tom, someone new just showed up, and he seems kinda lost. Could'ja go help him find his post? I need to do rounds."

I nodded. "Sure."

The raven-haired guard grinned. "Cool! Thanks," she said, turning to leave.

"Wait," Mr. Scotsman said to Melody. "Can you check the Parts and Service room for me? Tell me if you see anything strange?"

She raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "Sure thing, boss," she said, then left.

I poured a second cup of coffee, hoping that the employee who just showed was who I thought it was.

* * *

Leaning against the wall was a young man, couldn't have been twenty. He looked exhausted, his blond hair had a bad case of bed head, and he was looking suspiciously at the animatronics on stage.

Yup. Must be the night guard, I thought as I approached him. Only employee who would be scared of the Toys. Sure enough, his name tag said, 'Jeremy F.'

"Hey, need this?" I said, offering the other mug of coffee.

He jerked his head towards me. Guess he must not have noticed me. "Oh! Th-thanks!" he said, taking the mug.

I stood next to him, glancing at the Toy band myself. To my surprise, Bonnie turned and looked back at me. I shuddered. While I wouldn't say I hated the Toys, I still liked the classic ones better.

"I really hate those things," I heard a voice say.

I looked at Jeremy, who was glaring at the animatronics. He continued, "They're just so creepy-looking, y'know? Not to mention completely crazy. I mean, they keep trying to-" He cut off when he saw me looking at him. He switched his gaze to his drink and muttered, "...Never mind."

I realized I hadn't introduced myself yet. "Hey, my name's Thomas. You're Jeremy, right?"

He looked at me, and then said, "Y-yeah."

I smiled, then elbowed him gently. "Heh, don't worry, I don't bite." I then said, more seriously, "I'm just glad you're okay after last night."

His eyes widened. "You were the guy on the phone last night?" he said, a small smile on his face, his eyes damp-looking. "Thank you. Thank you so much."

I sure wasn't expecting that. "H-hey, no problem. Like I said, I'm glad you alright, kid."

He rubbed his arm, and I noticed a bandage there. Wonder what happened to him? "Yeah, well, I think they knew that, one way or another, it was my last night. I nearly went crazy fighting those things. The fact that I had to work in the morning didn't help." He paused, then said, "Neither did what you said last night, about the spare suit and all. What was that about, anyway?"

I looked away. I don't think I'm ever going to get over that.

Jeremy must have guessed I was upset, because he said, "F-forget it. I'll ask our boss later." He looked toward the prize counter, then shuddered. "How the heck did that thing get approved?" he said, disgusted.

I followed his gaze. A tall, lanky figure with a mask was waving to some children holding stuffed animals. I grimaced, saying, "I'm not the only one wondering that? Your guess is as good as mine." I chuckled as he made the traditional 'I'm watching you' motion at the Puppet.

The younger man looked at me. "What? Don't you hold an inherent distrust for childrens' dolls?" he said, smiling.

I shrugged. "Not inherent, but that one's creepy. Not to mention it seems to...think, almost. I know it sounds dumb, but-"

"Nope. Not at all," Jeremy said, deadpan. "That thing nearly got me last night. I got lucky and the clock hit six, but still..." He bit his lip, shaking his head. "Never mind that, though. I'm fine now, and that's what matters."

We went on like that for a while, talking and sharing stories. Jeremy was really a nice guy, if a bit shy. Melody walked by at one point while we were talking and waved at me.

"Who's that?" Jeremy asked as I waved back.

"Oh, that's Melody," I said. "She's the other day shift guard. You'll probably end up splitting day duty with her, assuming you want to come back when this place reopens?"

He raised an eyebrow, saying, "Well, I guess I could. I mean, this is pretty much the only place I was able to get hired, and I'd hate to leave you guys hanging, but I-"

"Fitzgerald!" a voice called out. We both looked up, and Bella was pointing toward the Kids' Cove. "I thought you were supposed to be keeping people from messing with the bots"

"I-I am!" Jeremy said, panicked. He stood up straight, running towards Bella.

"Well, some little kid's screwing with the Mangle. You'd best go deal with them," she said, crossing her arms.

"G-got it." The guard looked at me. "See you later, Thomas?" he asked hopefully.

"Sure," I said, smiling after the younger man as he ran off. I then glared at Bella. "Y'know, your father wanted to talk to you. Something about how the animatronics were still on last night while Jeremy was here?"

Her eyes went wide, and then she glared at me. "I swear to you, Phillips, someday that mouth of yours is going to get you in trouble," she said, walking up to me and poking me in the chest, "and that mouth of yours is going to be what leaves you up a creek without a paddle."

She turned and left.

I looked after her, confused. Could you blame me? My employer's daughter, who was set to inherit the company, just told me- what was that? Sounded like something between a threat and a prophecy.

I shook my head as I headed towards Kids' Cove. I had bigger things to worry about. Like making sure this little girl's birthday went alright.

I walked in, and sure enough, there was a little boy standing next to the Mangle, Jeremy apparently trying to stop the kid from tearing it apart. I looked around, wondering where the boy's mother was. I faced the door, ready to leave, then heard a cry of fear from behind me.

I turned, just in time to see the mess of parts clamp its jaws around Jeremy's head.

* * *

People say that, in times of emergency, your memory either becomes a blur, or is as clear as day.

Lucky for you, in my case, it was the second one.

I ran towards Jeremy, screaming his name, hoping desperately for a response. I could hear Melody calling for backup, Mr. Scotsman telling people to evacuate, Fritz running to call 911, a woman calling for her son-

The boy!

He was standing stock still, looking up at the Mangle in terror as it got ready to attack again.

Without thinking, I grabbed the kid, pulling him away just in time. The Mangle's head ran straight into the floor, while the other employees fought to shut it off.

I ran, carrying the boy over my shoulder fireman-style. When I reached the other side of the room, I stopped, put the boy down and looked at him. "Are you alright?" I asked, fighting back tears.

The boy nodded. "F-Foxy tried to-"

"I know," I said, nodding. "It was scary, but it's a good thing you're not hurt."

"Mikey!" A woman ran towards us. "Mikey, are you hurt?"

"He's fine, ma'am, but you and your son need to leave," I said. But by the time I finished my sentence, she had picked the boy-Mikey-up and was nearly running out. Mikey waved at me and mouthed a "Thank you" as the two left.

I turned to the sight of the attack. A throng of employees surrounded the fallen guard. I ran towards them, only to hear banging coming from somewhere else in the building.

Mr. Scotsman looked up in a panic. "The Parts and Service room! Thomas, go lock the Parts and Service room!"

I hesitated, then ran that way. To my horror, when I got there, something was opening the door. I body-slammed the door shut, locking it.

Were the animatronics trying to get out? It didn't make sense, but then again, neither did them mistaking the night guard for an endoskeleton.

By the time I got back, they were putting Jeremy on a stretcher and rolling him out. It was about then that the adrenaline rush wore off and my feet gave out from underneath me.

* * *

I later found exactly what happened.

I was one of the last people to leave, due to breaking down and refusing to leave like a stubborn child. My brain just didn't want to comprehend what happened. Mr. Scotsman explained that, by what Melody saw on the camera, the boy had been taking the Mangle apart, just like the kids normally do. Jeremy tried to talk him down, and while they weren't paying attention, the Mangle tried to attack the kid. Jeremy pushed the kid out of the way, and got hurt himself.

"H-how badly is he hurt?" I asked, though I wasn't sure I wanted the answer.

Mr. Scotsman hesitated, then said, "He's in critical condition. The doctors are having him sent to a better hospital for treatment. It..." He took a deep breath, continuing, "It sounds like a part of his frontal lobe was torn off."

My heart leapt into my throat, along with most of my stomach contents. "No..." My eyes were damp, my head spinning.

"Calm down, Phillips," Bella said, putting a hand on my shoulder. There was only the slightest hint of sadness in her voice, which only made it worse. "I'm sure he'll be alright."

I turned towards her, yelling, "This is your fault! If he hadn't been stuck with the night shift, he would have been able to get away in time!"

She was stunned, but recovered quickly, saying, "It's hardly my fault he was too slow! Jesus, do you just need someone to blame, or-"

"You're the one who sent the new kid to handle the most dangerous animatronic on his own!"

Shut your trap, Phillips, or I'll-"

"Enough! Both of you!" Mr. Scotsman said, glaring at the two of us. We both stopped immediately, and he continued, "It was a terrible accident, but it was no one's fault."

I sighed. He was right. As much as I wished, it couldn't have been prevented. I watched as he picked up the last of his things, and Bella shot me a dirty look.

"Boss..." I paused, unsure. After what I'd seen, did I actually want to go through with this?

Then I thought about Ross, who'd had to deal with it for a week without anyone-including me-believing him. About Jeremy, who might have lost his life due to the animatronics' glitching. I needed to do this. To find out what was wrong with the bots. And the only way to do it was through first-hand experience.

I noticed Mr. Scotsman and Bella looking at me. Taking a deep breath, I said, "When the pizzeria reopens, can I take the night shift?"

* * *

And that's how I got here, getting ready for my first night at my new job as night watchman at Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria. I know I need to find out what happened. For my own ease of conscience, if nothing else.

But I'm sure there's nothing to worry about. I'll be fine, I'm sure.

* * *

 _A/N: WOW, longest thing I ever finished! I'm honestly proud of myself._

 _So, now you've met Howard Scotsman (puns are fun), owner of the pizzeria in 1987, as well as his daughter Bella, who goes on to own the restaurant in the first game. Also, you've been formally introduced to Thomas Phillips, A.K.A. the Phone Guy, who may show up again in a later, multi-chapter story I'm working on, where you'll get to see Mike as well._

 _Anyway, I'd like to take the time to thank everyone who fav'd and followed this fic. Special thanks to MMiladinova and OneDoesNotSimplyWrite for reviewing! *Quiet happy squeaking* *Ahem* Thanks again, all of you!_

 _Anyway, I've got Camp NaNoWriMo in July, so no more one-shots for a while. If something either called "Helping Hand" or "A Statue's Escape" show up under my name, well... It must have gone well. See ya later, guys!_


End file.
